Things I love...

I'm not exactly sure why I feel compelled to write/type this, but I do. Maybe to just give folks a better glimpse into myself and what makes me tick. First and foremost, I love the Lord. Yes, I'm a Christian which I'm proud to say and am thankful that he guides me in everything I do. This world isn't the same one I grew up in. Today I find myself constantly in disbelief on how rude people can be; from not saying a simple "thank you" when I hold a door for someone too being cut off repeatedly in traffic or even a parking lot (more on that below). 

I try to always live by the Golden Rule of treating everyone like I would want to be treated and we teach our children to do the same...

What else do I love? My wife and kids mean the world to me and I would rather spend all of my free and available time with them than doing anything personally for myself. Now with that being said, sure I still need time to myself, and surely my family needs time away from me, regardless of how awesome I am. BTW, that was a joke. :)

But beyond my wife and kids, my animals rule our house. Our Golden Retriever, Cody, and our two fluffy and personable cats, LuLu and Rhett. At least they're personable around us, but anytime we have a petsitter or a guest come by, they don't believe we have cats as they are never seen.

Some other quick things that I love:

• I love helping people and giving back. The feeling you get is so rewarding and unlike any other. 
• Obviously I love photography and it truly is my passion. But more importantly, I love capturing memories for clients and simply just bringing joy to others through my images. And of course I love getting feedback on my work; in fact I love that almost as much as doing the actual photography.
• I love learning and growing and am always trying to improve in everything I do.
• I love to cook and am still trying to shed some extra pounds...baby weight I claim I gained when my wife was pregnant with our first child, er, almost 15 years ago. 
• I love to travel and do landscape photography, although not to the extent I used to. Prior to getting married, I would take 1-2 weeks a year to go to locations such as Montana, Utah, Maine and various states to hike and explore.

Things to rub me the wrong way:

• People who don't use turn signals. It amazes me that there are so many beautiful and expensive cars that apparently don't come equipped with directional signals...
• Rude people. yep, I mentioned it above and its worth repeating. I can be walking towards a person, make direct eye contact and say hello, only to receive zero acknowledgment. Obviously another difficult chore; almost as tough as moving your arm/hand to use a turn signal...
• Mean people. Similar to above but only amplified. Too much of this stuff happening right now. 
• People that mistreat animals or God forbid, torture them. Why and how on earth can someone do this is beyond me. 
• People who are oblivious to their surroundings or are simply too selfish to care. I see this often in grocery or department stores as an example where someone is right in the middle of an aisle and blocking it. They see you coming and don't even try to move to let you though until you say "excuse me"... Uggghhh. 

Anyway, I better stop before I really get on a roll and say what I really think. 

Have an amazing day and wave hi as you use that turn signal... :)